People's Police Holds Key

Three major problems confronting the country and agitating the people are: the challenge of terrorism, the Maoist threat and the cancer of corruption. The Government has been dealing with these problems in a manner that can, at best, be described as cosmetic. The terrorist threat is sought to be met without improving police infrastructure. The Maoist insurrection is being dealt with essentially as a law and order problem without effectively addressing socio-economic grievances which have alienated large segments of the population, especially in tribal areas. And, the Government's commitment to combating corruption is questionable and its half-hearted attempt to draft a Lokpal Bill did not carry conviction.

A deeper analysis would help establish that a professional police force, which considers itself accountable to the people of the country and gives primacy to upholding the laws of the land in all situations, is absolutely essential to resolving the aforesaid problems. An under-staffed, ill-equipped, poorly trained and de-motivated police just cannot deal with the threat of terrorism. It is true that in the wake of the 26/11 attack on Mumbai, the Government undertook a number of measures to enhance the capabilities of the police, but the fact remains that these measures-decentralising the deployment of National Security Guard, augmenting the strength of the Intelligence Bureau, setting up counter-insurgency training schools, activating the Multi-Agency Centre, among others-meant improvements only in the superstructure. The state governments' response has been lackadaisical with the result that the police station, which is the basic unit of police functioning, remains as impoverished as ever. No wonder, the local police is caught on the wrong foot every time the terrorists strike.

The Maoist problem is being dealt with in a non-serious manner by the state governments. There is hardly any effort towards substantially augmenting the strength of the police forces, improving their working conditions or upgrading their training. The states are content to lean on the shoulders of the central paramilitary forces. And so, operations against the Maoists are proceeding in a very desultory fashion. Most development projects in tribal areas are on paper, with little to show on the ground.

On the anti-corruption front, the political class, aided by a self-serving bureaucracy, has successfully neutralised the anti-corruption and vigilance organisations in the states. At the national level, the Government manages to subvert the CBI in all cases of a politically sensitive nature. The popular support to Anna Hazare clearly demonstrated people's anger and frustration over pervasive corruption.

Police is the key if we are to really make a dent on the terrorist front or make headway in dealing with the Maoist problem or successfully combating the virus of corruption. And yet, we find the state governments blatantly misusing the police to promote their political agenda, harass their opponents, and at times even muzzle democratic freedoms. The State of Uttar Pradesh is a classic example, where the ruling parties have, for the past decade, been using the police as their private militia. The British used the police to entrench their imperial authority; our chief ministers use it to entrench their political authority and, what is worse, loot the resources of the state to fill their coffers. The average citizen of the country has, not surprisingly, little faith in the police.

The Supreme Court issued comprehensive directions for police reforms on September 22, 2006. It is a sad commentary on the working of our democracy that the majority of states are dragging their feet over implementing the directions. Some states hurriedly enacted laws with a view to circumventing the implementation of the directions and legitimising the status quo. It is high time that the apex court wields the whip to discipline the states.

Certain measures need to be taken immediately to transform what is today a Ruler's Police into a People's Police: insulate it from all kinds of pressures, give security of tenure to officers, improve the police-population ratio and bring it as close to the UN-mandated yardstick as possible, improve housing conditions for its personnel, and raise the level of training. Police reforms are to improve governance and uphold the rule of law.